Denon DVD-3800BDCI, Panasonic DMP-BD50, and Samsung BD-P1500 BLU-RAY players compared

[HDTV1080P]

3 different brands of BLU-RAY players compared in new September 2008 Home Theater Magazine

On pages 44-54 in the September 2008 Home Theater Magazine review, the Denon DVD-3800BDCI, Panasonic DMP-BD50, and Samsung BD-P1500 are compared against each other by Kris Deering.

Denon DVD-3800BDCI review info

“When I compared the Denon DVD-3800BDCI with the transport, I saw immediate improvement. The DVD-3800BDCI’s performance with 1080p/24 Blu-ray playback looked better than any other players I’ve seen to date.”
“It provided incredible detail and definition. I find it really hard to compare players with Blu-ray playback because they all look excellent across the board. However, when I watched the DVD-3800BDCI on my front projector system, the Denon edged out other players I had on hand in both depth and fine detail.”
“The DVD-3800BDCI’s performance with standard DVD was also first rate. Many Blu-ray players lack great DVD playback capabilities, and this is the first player I would recommended to replace your higher-end, standalone DVD model. The performance fell in line with Denon’s flagship DVD-5910CI, which is one of the best DVD players I’ve ever tested.”

Positive and negative Denon highlights

“Step-up Blu-ray video performance”
“Sluggish navigation and load times”
“Exceptional build and design quality”
“Excellent standard-definition video processing” (Great 480I DVD playback quality)
“Full 7.1 analog and digital audio support” (Will only bitstream DTS-HD and will not decode it internally.)

Panasonic DMP-BD50 review info

“The DMP-BD50 offers full 1080p/24 support with Blu-ray and upconverted DVD playback.”
“Blu-ray playback looked excellent and in line with the best players I’ve seen. The notable exception to this is the Denon DVD-3800BDCI, which looked a tad crisper than the Panasonic.”
“Unfortunately, the DMP-BD50 falls short in standard DVD playback.”
“I hope Panasonic offers a full 7.1-channel analog output in a future model. I would also like to see it improve in the speed department.”

Positive and negative Panasonic highlights

“Full complement of onboard audio decoding” (Only 5.1 analog outs instead of 7.1)
“Exceptional HD video-processing”
“Poor standard-definition video processing” (Poor 480I DVD video processing)
“Bonus View BD-Live compliant” (Requires one to purchase external 1GB SD card for BD-Live)

Samsung BD-P1500 review info

“The BD-P1500 did a great job with 1080p/24 Blu-ray playback. It presented the high-quality image that we expected from Blu-ray players.”
“Since Samsung doesn’t use a high-end video processor, the BD-P1500 lacks the ability to properly convert 1080i to 1080P, regardless of the cadence. This only affects a limited number of titles on the market today (mostly concert videos), but it is still something you should consider if you’re looking for a complete high-performance Blu-ray solution.”
“The BD-1500 did have an anomaly that I haven’t seen on any other Blu-ray player. For some reason, the menus looked slightly blurry.” “Letters lacked their usual sharpness, and menus exhibited a bit of haze and lack of contrast. While this didn’t affect movie playback, it still became a distracting oddity.”
“Standard DVD video performance far better than I expected. Most Blu-ray players offer mediocre DVD performance compared with the better DVD players on the market. But the BD-P1500 performed remarkably well with my testing. It offered high-end deinterlacing performance and better than average scaling quality. I don’t think it offers quite the performance of Samsung’s more expensive BD-P1200, which used Silicon Optix’s HQV processing, but it worked better than majority of players near this price point. Most people will find this to be a suitable substitute for almost any DVD player on the market.”

“Without a doubt, the BD-P1500 is the fastest standalone Blu-ray player I’ve used. While it isn’t quite as fast as Sony’s Playstation 3, the BD-P1500’s load times were faster than the other players in this roundup and one’s I used before.” “It moved at speeds that were more in line with what I’ve come to expect from the PS3. It’s great to see a manufacturer start to make some real strides in this department.”

Positive and negative Samsung highlights

“Fast load and navigation for a standalone player”
“Great stand-definition video processing” (Great 480I DVD playback quality)
“Limited onboard audio decoding” (Only 2 analog stereo outputs, must use HDMI for bit streaming all advanced audio formats.)
(The Samsung Blu-ray player lacks the 480I S-Video legacy output which is useful for old 480I TV’s with S-video. Up until this model all other BLU-RAY and DVD players included lagacy S-Video jack) Some people upgrade all their DVD players in their house to BLU-RAY players in order to be able to play BLU-RAY’s from all their TV’s. Eliminating the legacy S-Video was a bad feature to cut.

[hifiguymi]

The DVD-3800BDCI does decode dtsHD HR and dtsHD MA internally.

[HDTV1080P]

Originally Posted by hifiguymi

The DVD-3800BDCI does decode dtsHD HR and dtsHD MA internally.

Yes the Denon 3800BDCI can internally decode and bitstream DTS HD master audio but according to several user reports and the Home Theater magazine review the 3800BDCI can only bitstream DTS-HD high resolution audio.
http://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=1075290&postcount=3

Quote from Home Theater review

“The DVD-3800BDCI doesn’t support internal decoding of DTS-HD High Resolution soundtracks, but it passes the bitstream just fine.”“I am unclear why Denon didn’t support this seldom-used DTS codec since the AVR-4308CI will, and because full Master Audio support is available.”

[pat00139]

Interesting comparison. Gives a good reason for the $2k price tag of the Denon player, and confirms what I thought before. Too bad about Panny's continuing bad upscaling. Oh, well. Looks like the Sammy's a good value, as well, considering the price.

Thanks for the info!

[taygan315]

I am in a toss up between Sony S350 and the Samsung BD-P1500. I am keeping my 1200 for the dvd upscaling, which is terrific,imho. But I want a upgrade for what wil be my main player and not rely on my for movies. Still going to do some research. Thanks for posting. Good read.

[ack_bak]

Originally Posted by taygan315

I am in a toss up between Sony S350 and the Samsung BD-P1500. I am keeping my 1200 for the dvd upscaling, which is terrific,imho. But I want a upgrade for what wil be my main player and not rely on my for movies. Still going to do some research. Thanks for posting. Good read.

Samsung seems to be the most hit or miss when it comes to BD players and user reviews.. I would lean more towards the Sony... Also the upcoming Panasonic BD35 sounds promising (2.0 capable player).

[BLU HD DEFENDER]

i love my bdp 1500

[pnorth_12]

I love my bdp1500 too. With HD DVD I thought long load times weren't a big deal, but after getting used to the Samsung I really do like the increased speed on loading. Especially the initial eject and load. Glad it came out as being one of the fastest players. I've seen the new Sony in use and was really surprised it took as long as it did with boot and eject. Think I made a great purchase for the price. Haven't noticed the blurry lettering on the samsung, I'll have to watch closely or maybe not - haven't noticed it so far LOL.